


Home Sweet Home

by WhiskersandQuiff



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Fluff, Forever Home, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:22:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23643019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhiskersandQuiff/pseuds/WhiskersandQuiff
Summary: Dan and Phil moving through the years.
Relationships: Dan Howell/Phil Lester
Comments: 4
Kudos: 31





	Home Sweet Home

**Author's Note:**

  * For [manchestereyes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/manchestereyes/gifts).



> This fic was written for [phloridas](https://phloridas.tumblr.com), who's been having a rough couple weeks due to some *ahem* unmentionables. Claire deserves the world, but I hope this little fic can make her smile :)
> 
> Special thanks to [pasteldnp](https://pasteldnp.tumblr.com) for betaing!

**2011**

Dan looked around the flat at the boxes littering every surface. It was an overwhelming reminder of the fact that this was _real_. He was really moving in with Phil, and that was terrifying.

He’d moved away from home already to go to uni, of course, so that wasn’t the scary part. He felt no concerns about moving from his parents. The fear instead came from the unknown. They had no idea how long YouTube would last or if it would be enough to sustain them at all, not to even mention that they didn’t know if _they_ would last.

Dan had no reason to believe they’d break up, of course. They were moving in together, after all, and they loved each other deeply. But the anxiety was still there. What would happen if they broke up? Dan would have to move back out, which would be a long and difficult process.

Actually, the more Dan thought about it, the more worried he felt. What was keeping them together? Phil was way out of his league, clearly, and there was no way he wanted to deal with all of Dan’s issues, not after the intense drama of him dropping out. Dan was just a temporary fling, and now someone to help pay the rent, until somebody better came along. And when Phil realized all this, Dan would have to, what, move back home? The thought of losing Phil made Dan’s chest tighten and breathing quicken.

“Dan?” Phil’s voice broke Dan from his thoughts.

He turned around to see Phil standing in the doorway, brow wrinkled in concern but smiling softly.

“You okay?” Phil asked. “You were standing there for a while.”

Dan’s lower lip trembled against his will. “I’m-” a sob escaped.

“Bear!” Phil crossed the room in a flash, somehow avoiding all the boxes with a shocking gracefulness. He wrapped Dan in a hug with his chin resting on Dan’s head. “Sh, it’s okay, I’m here. Just breathe, okay?”

A few minutes later, Dan had calmed enough to speak.

“Sorry, I’m just scared. I love you so much and I don’t want to lose you.”

“Lose me?” Phil quietly exclaimed. “Bear, I’m not going anywhere. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’d never give that up. It’s okay to be scared, though, this is a big step. But I’m right here with you and I’m ecstatic that I get to say that now, no more long-distance calls or taxis just to see each other. I’ll always be here to hug you, now.”

Dan sniffed. “You made me cry again, jerk,” he mumbled, but the fondness pouring out of his tone made it less than convincing. “I love you,” he said again.

“I love you, too,” Phil replied, kissing Dan’s forehead.

As frightened of the future as he was, Dan was also excited. The future was a mysterious unknown and utterly terrifying, but there before him stood the familiar, the comforting. Phil was such a solid foundation of affection and support that Dan knew everything would turn out okay and all of this was worth it.

After a few more minutes, Dan pulled away, now calm and ready for the next step in their lives together. “Let’s get these boxes unpacked, yeah?”

**2012**

“Why are you lying on the floor?”

Dan groaned dramatically, wiggling so his forehead pressed more firmly against the floor. “Can’t be bothered to move.”

A snicker came from above. “We already did that, we just have to unpack now. I can’t do that if you’re lying on the floor like a beached whale.”

They’d just made the move to London to be closer to the radio show. They had absolutely no furniture assembled so far and barely anything unpacked from their unholy number of boxes. Really, who needed this much _stuff_?

“That sounds like work,” Dan whined. “I’m perfectly comfortable right here on the floor.”

Phil let out an exaggerated sigh. “Alright, guess I’ll assemble the bed myself and you can sleep on the floor alone…”

“Floor’s comfy,” grunted Dan into the floorboards. “And it won’t steal my blankets or put freezing feet on my calves.”

“Oi, I resent that.”

“And the floor won’t keep talking when I’m trying to ignore the world.”

Phil started walking away, calling over his shoulder, “Enjoy your new boyfriend, then, see if _he_ lets you be the big spoon.”

Dan’s head shot up. “You’ll let me be the big spoon?”

“Eh, maybe. If you’re good.” Phil kept walking. “But if we don’t have a bed by nighttime… and look at that, it’s already evening…”

Dan would later swear he’d never successfully stood up so fast in his life.

**2017**

“Thank fuck for aircon,” Dan said as he faceplanted onto their new bed.

“You can say that again,” Phil agreed, following suit.

“Everything’s sore,” Dan whined. “There are too many boxes and they’re all too heavy.” He turned his head to pout at Phil. “Massage me?”

“No way, bub, I’m too tired.”

“Ugh, rude.” Dan turned his head back the other way. They’d fully unpacked their bedroom today, so it was now decorated to a perfect moon aesthetic. It was the kind of aesthetics Dan would’ve only dreamed of when he was younger.

It was simple- a nice, clean monochrome, and the room was without clutter. If only that would last; Dan had too much experience living with Phil by now to even dare to hope that their room would be anything less than a live-in sock drawer within a week. As annoyed as he made himself out to be about the socks, he could feel a fond smile creeping onto his face. Phil was ridiculous, yes, but he was Dan’s, and Dan would never get tired of that knowledge.

Suddenly, Phil flopped his arm around next to him, earning a few “Hey!”s and “Phil what the fuck are you doing”s along the way, but his hand reached its destination eventually and their fingers linked. Dan turned his head to Phil again, eyes were squinted and his lips pursed in fake annoyance.

“You hit me in the head three times when you could’ve just _asked_ , you knob.”

Phil shrugged, eyes twinkling with affection. “Where’s the fun in that?”

Dan rolled his eyes, but he was smiling.

“C’mere,” Phil demanded, rolling onto his back and opening his arms. He tugged on their clasped hands encouragingly.

“Bossy,” Dan grumbled through his smile. Happily, Dan wiggled his way onto Phil’s chest, appreciating the familiar squish of his body.

“You love it,” Phil replied, reaching his free hand up to run his fingers through Dan’s curls.

“Hmm, I suppose so,” Dan hummed. He reached his head up to kiss Phil’s jaw, then yawned. “I’m gonna sleep on our brand new bed in our brand new flat.”

Phil sighed contentedly. “Our brand new mouse-free flat without the cracks in the ceiling or a gas leak.”

“A flat that isn’t trying to kill us, can you believe it?” Dan mumbled into Phil’s shirt. “It’s a fucking miracle.”

“And soon, it won’t be just a flat,” Phil whispered.

Dan smiled sleepily up at Phil. “Soon, it won’t be just a flat,” he agreed.

**Forever Home**

Standing in front of their new house, Dan felt a lot of emotions.

He hadn’t expected to cry, not really; this was a long time coming and they’d been itching for this moment for years. But he supposed all that waiting turned into relief the moment they walked up the short path and unlocked the front door.

Of course, they’d been inside the house before when they were still house hunting, but this was the first time it was actually _theirs_. This was the culmination of years of waiting and wanting and trying and having to step back and realize it just wasn’t time yet, but it finally _was_ time. They were going to move in and Dan was going to spend the rest of his life with Phil in _this house_. They were proper adults now, with a lawn and a garden and a little stone path to the road. There was a garage and a fence out back for when they’d get a dog, and there was enough space for so much more. Every one of Dan’s dreams for the future was tied to a house like this, and now they could all come true.

They would put a pride flag out front. They had a tub big enough to actually fit their lanky limbs in the master bedroom’s ensuite. A few extra bedrooms were just down the hall from theirs, so they could host their families or friends and, one day, their kids. Settling down and starting a family was just a few packed-up boxes away, and the sheer potential of it all was overwhelming.

Phil’s hand gave Dan’s a reassuring squeeze as they stepped into what would soon be their lounge. Dan looked over at Phil to see joyful tears rolling down his cheeks, too, and even without any furniture or boxes unpacked yet, Dan knew they were finally at home, sweet home.

**Author's Note:**

> I also post to my Tumblr! See the rest of my fics [here](https://whiskersandquiff.tumblr.com/fics-masterlist)


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